


Cuddles and Cough Medicine

by melroihag



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, FLUFFY FLUFFIN' FLUFF, i adore these two so goddamn much, nicole is a caregiver, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 08:04:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12008523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melroihag/pseuds/melroihag
Summary: Nicole being the natural caregiver that she is, takes care of Waverly when she’s sick.





	Cuddles and Cough Medicine

**Author's Note:**

> Genuinely curious.. can you die from catching a serious case of the feels? Asking for a friend..

Nicole chastised herself for yawning for what seemed to be the millionth time, and it was only 11am. She finished pouring a mug of steaming coffee for herself and briefly registered Wynonna wandering into the break room.

The brunette swiped the cup of coffee and pat the Officer on the back.  
“Thanks for the coffee. I really needed it.” Wynonna groaned, before slumping into a chair.  
Nicole rolled her eyes and poured herself — another— cup of coffee, before turning to face the brunette and leant back against the counter.  
She noticed the dark circles under the eldest Earp’s eyes and wondered if she’d been suffering from nightmares again.  
“You alright?” she asked, brow raised as she peered over the mug in her hands.  
Wynonna narrowed her gaze at the Officer.  
“If that’s your way of telling me that I look like shit… I already know. Waverly kept me up with her constant coughing last night. I love the girl, would do anything for her… but if she coughs one more goddamned time… so help me peacemaker…” the brunette’s ramble drifted into silence, as she pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled a deep breath.

As the brunette’s words sank in, a frown formed on the redhead’s face, giving her a striking resemblance to a puppy, Wynonna thought.  
“Waverly’s sick?” Nicole’s voice was quiet and the brunette rolled her eyes at the Officer’s pout.  
“She probably didn’t tell you because she doesn’t want you to worry. It’s nothing. Just a cough.” the eldest Earp shrugged, her intention to soothe whatever worries the redhead had, but somehow the nonchalant attitude only seemed anger the Officer.

Upon seeing the scowl on Nicole’s face, Wynonna motioned with her hand for the Officer to speak what was on her mind.  
“It’s not nothing, Wynonna.” Nicole sighed, “Waverly dated… Champ… for years. Do you think he paid _any_ attention when she was sick?” she asked with an edge to her tone at the mere thought of the boy-man.  
“She’s probably used to being left to get well again, all by herself…” the redhead raked a hand through her hair, the very thought of her girlfriend not being taken care of properly, causing her heart to ache.  
A moment of silence passed and Wynonna could practically hear the Officer thinking from halfway across the room.

Next thing the brunette knew, Nicole was pouring the rest of her coffee down the sink, and returning to her desk.  
Usually she’d tease the redhead about being smitten, but she couldn’t bring herself to. Chump hadn’t deserved Waverly, Wynonna knew that for sure. But seeing the effort the Nicole puts into her relationship with Waverly, she couldn’t help but wonder if she’d finally found someone worthy of her baby girl. 

With a fond eye roll, she thanked the Officer again as she crossed the bullpen, before disappearing into the BBD office. Unlike earlier that morning when she’d arrived, Wynonna had a rare genuine smile on her face from knowing that —despite herself being back, for awhile now — Waverly wasn’t **alone** anymore. 

**—————————————————**

Nicole lasted another 20 minutes, before she rushed into Nedley’s office.  
The Sheriff wasn’t as oblivious as everyone thought, and he knew from not seeing Waverly around the station, and the slightly frazzled look on his deputy’s face, that she’d be about to ask if she could leave early. 

He gave her the afternoon off and when she requested the next two days off — unpaid — he was helpless to resist the redhead’s puppy eyes. Randy Nedley prided himself on being a strong man, but it was quickly becoming clear that his favourite Officer had him wrapped around her little finger, just like his daughter. He was unable to keep up his steely resolve when Nicole smiled slightly and those damned dimples showed. He immediately dismissed her and shook his head fondly as she left his office hurriedly. He really needed to grow a backbone when it came to Chrissy and Nicole, but somehow he knew that’d never happen. 

**—————————————————**

After speaking with Nedley, Nicole finished up her paper work and tidied her desk, before leaving the station and going straight to the store.  
She knew what ingredients she needed in order to cook once she got to the homestead, what she didn’t know however was which medicine Waverly would need. 

Not wanting to wake her girlfriend in case she was sleeping, and also wanting to surprise her, she got five different flavours of cough sweets, two different cough syrups and six different types of cold/flu tablets.  
In hindsight — as she made her way to the homestead — she realised she may have gone slightly overboard on the whole medicine front… but she couldn’t bring herself to care all that much. Her girlfriend was sick and Nicole was going to be there to see her through the worst of it. 

She parked the cruiser next to Waverly’s Jeep, collected the bags of medicine and ingredients in one hand, as she locked the car and made her way to the front door. She fished around in her jacket pocket for the spare key Wynonna and Waverly had given her, for emergencies only, the eldest Earp had said pointedly, before highlighting that jumping her baby sister’s bones, did in fact **not** count as an emergency, which had left both Nicole and Waverly blushing furiously. 

Entering the homestead she heard the faint sounds of coughing, a blowing of a nose and some exaggerated and frustrated groaning coming from upstairs.  
Placing the bag of groceries on the kitchen counter, Nicole was familiar enough with the homestead now enough to know where everything in the kitchen was. She opened the cupboard and reached for a glass, filling it three quarters of the way up with water. 

With the bag of various cough medicines in one hand, and the glass of water in the other, the redhead made her way up the stairs, frowning as she heard her girlfriend coughing violently.  
With a small knock on the door, Nicole heard a muffled, “Come in.” and opened the door, smiling sadly at the sight before her. 

The trash can beside Waverly’s bed was overfilled with used tissues. There were some more scattered over the duvet and the brunette was laying face down in the pillow, completely exhausted.  
“Wynonna, I’m sorry I kept you up all night…” the youngest Earp’s apology was muffled by the pillow.  
“Not, Wynonna… but she knows, don’t worry.” Nicole replied, a grin spreading on her face as Waverly’s head lifted at the sound of the redhead’s voice.  
“Nicole!” she sighed, a dreamy expression on her face.  
“Hey baby.” the Officer made her way over to the bed.  
Waverly’s face dropped instantly as Nicole got two feet away, which caused the redhead to stand still, her hands held up in surrender, showing her offerings of medicine and water to wash it down with.  
“Don’t come any closer… you’ll get sick.” Waverly said before coughing again. She groaned and fell face first back into the pillow. 

Nicole ignored her girlfriend’s worries and crossed the short distance. She placed the glass of water of Waverly’s bedside table and sat on the edge of the bed, beside her incredibly sick yet still breathtakingly beautiful girlfriend.  
Nicole gently massaged Waverly’s head, a small smile curving her lips as the brunette turned her head on the pillow so she could see her girlfriend properly. A content sigh escaped her lips from the feel of Nicole’s fingers against her scalp, effectively distracting her from the pounding headache she’d been suffering from all day, and her eyes fluttered closed. 

With her free hand, the redhead started to unpack the contents of the bag in her lap.  
“I didn’t know which type of cough medicine you usually take when you get sick, so I kind of got one of everything I could find.” Nicole rambled, not noticing that Waverly had opened her eyes and was gazing up at her in awe.  
Once she did notice, a blast coloured her cheeks and the hand in Waverly’s hair stilled.  
“Y-you bought all that? For me?” the genuine shock in the brunette’s tone, caused Officer to lean down a little closer.  
“I’ll let you in on a little secret…” Nicole stage-whispered, briefly looking behind her for comedic effect, which caused Waverly to cover her mouth to stifle a cough-giggle.  
The grin lighting up the Officer’s face softened, as did the sparkle in her eyes, and Waverly found herself completely captivated by her.  
“I’d do anything for you, _Waverly Earp_.” the admission was quiet, and felt like a promise.  
The way Nicole said the brunette’s name, like it was the answer to all of her prayers, instead of a curse — like the rest of the people in town did — never failed to leave her speechless.  
Waverly found herself wondering yet again, just how she had gotten so lucky to call this beautiful soul _**hers**_. 

Seeing the tears well up in the brunette’s eyes, Nicole leant down pressing a lingering kiss to Waverly’s forehead.  
“I brought up some water for you to take with whichever medicine you decide to take. I’m going to go downstairs, make some tea and something for you to eat because you can’t take medicine on an empty stomach…” her rambling was silenced from a hand reaching out and clasping her own.  
She looked over and found Waverly smiling gratefully up at her, “Thank you.”  
“Like I said… anything for you.” Nicole pressed a kiss to her girlfriend’s knuckles, before continuing.  
“I’ll bring everything up here so you don’t need to worry about making it down those stairs. Just rest up and I’ll be back.” she stroked her thumb comfortingly over the brunette’s hand, receiving a sleepy yawn and nod in response.  
A small chuckle escaped her as she watched Waverly’s eyes widen comically, at the array of medicine laid out on the bed before her.  
Before leaving to return to the kitchen, Nicole pressed a chaste kiss to the crown of her Waverly’s head, and received a “You’re the best ever!” in response, causing a permanent smile to spread on her face, as she exited the room and set about making her girlfriend’s favourite comfort food. 

**—————————————————**

An hour and a half later, Nicole entered Waverly’s room with a tray. Her heart soaring as she took a moment to memorise this moment. Waverly was snuggling a pillow, the way she usually would Nicole. Her breathing coming out in short puffs, blowing a strand of hair from her face. She placed the tray on the chair in the corner of the room, before making her way to Waverly’s side. 

Nicole didn’t want to wake her girlfriend, not after her looking so peaceful, but she knew that the woman in question hadn’t eaten all day.  
She awoke the sleeping beauty with a kiss to her forehead, and was rewarded with a sleepy Waverly. An involuntary grin spreading on her face, as the brunette reached up and traced the dimple in Nicole’s cheek.  
“I made your favourite.” Nicole whispered, dropping a quick kiss to the tip of the brunette’s nose.  
“You’re my favourite.” Waverly mumbled deliriously, the hand on Nicole’s cheek, sliding to the back of the redhead’s neck to pull her down into a cuddle.  
Sleepy Waverly was — arguably — Nicole’s favourite. The brunette was cuddly and all types of adorable.  
Nicole hummed and pressed multiple kisses to any patch of Waverly’s skin her lips touched. The brunette’s warm collarbone, neck, jaw, cheek, and a slight shiver ran through the brunette, causing the Officer’s heart to stutter. Sometimes she forgot that she had the same affect on Waverly, as Waverly did on her, and in those moments where she’s reminded of such a thing, she finds herself wondering how she got so lucky to call this smart, strong and brave woman, _**hers**_. 

Nicole helped Waverly sit up, making sure there were enough pillows behind her, and that she was comfortable enough, before bringing the tray of food over.  
The Officer had recreated Waverly’s favourite dish, a bowl of sweet and sour soup and beside it, a tub of peanut butter and a spoon. Also on the tray was another glass of water and a cup of tea.  
The redhead had made chamomile tea, to help Waverly sleep and added some honey to it, to help soothe her sore throat.  
“The tea is for after you’ve eaten. It’ll help you sleep a bit better.” Nicole said, anticipating the brunette’s reaction. 

What she didn’t expect was for Waverly to burst into tears.  
“Did I do something wrong?” Nicole immediately asked, panic shooting through her.  
The brunette shook her head, sniffling and reached over the tray towards Nicole.  
The redhead was instinctively pulled into her orbit and rest her forehead against the brunette’s. She wiped Waverly’s tears away gently with the pads of her thumbs.  
“I’m sorry, I just… I’ve not had someone take care of me like this for… well, years.” the sadness in her tone, caused a lump to grow in Nicole’s throat.  
They sat in companionable silence for a moment, just revelling in each other’s presence, before Nicole spoke up.  
“Thank you.” she said, smiling bashfully at the look of confusion on Waverly’s face.  
“I think I should be the one saying that.” Waverly looked pointedly down at the tray before her gaze returned to Nicole’s.  
“No, I just mean… I know you can look after yourself, but… thank you for letting me take care of you.” the redhead’s face flushed crimson and she looked down, avoiding the brunette’s gaze. 

Waverly was left speechless, she like she was short-circuiting as she tried to process what had just happened. Her girlfriend had left work early, gone to the store to pick up a million different types of medicine, made Waverly her favourite food… and then thanked her.  
The brunette hooked her finger under and lifted the Officer’s chin, so she could look into her eyes properly.  
“Thank _you_. For everything. For all of this…” Waverly pointed to the tray of food and the many boxes of medicine on the bedside table, beside them.  
“You don’t have to thank me, Waves.” Nicole’s lips twitched with a small smile, “I wanted to do all this.”  
Waverly closed her eyes, rest her forehead against Nicole’s once more, and gave herself a moment to just bask in the feeling of being loved and taken care of. Just the overwhelming feeling of being _safe_ with Nicole by her side.  
The brunette’s stomach rumbling loudly, ruined the moment, leaving both women laughing. 

Nicole headed downstairs to clean up, whilst Waverly ate. She washed the dishes she’d used to cook the food, and finished tidying up the kitchen before making her way back upstairs.  
Waverly had finished eating and was currently sipping the tea. A warm smile spreading on the brunette’s face as she saw her girlfriend enter the room once more.  
The Officer moved the tray off of the bed and placed it back on the chair in the corner of the room, just as Waverly placed the now-empty tea cup on her bedside table, knocking some of the boxes of medicine onto the floor.  
Nicole moved everything out of the way, before sitting on the edge of Waverly’s bed. 

The brunette looked like she wanted to say something.  
“What is it?” Nicole asked, tucking a strand of hair behind Waverly’s ear absentmindedly.  
“Earlier… you said the tea should help me sleep better.” Waverly began saying.  
“Yeah, it was chamomile to help you sleep… and I added a little honey to it too, to help soothe your throat from the cough.” the redhead tilted her head slightly.  
The thoughtfulness of her girlfriend caused another waves of tears to spring to her eyes.  
Nicole read the situation completely wrong, and hung her head, pinching the bridge of her nose as she mentally berated herself.  
“I’m sorry, I should’ve asked… I don’t even know if you like-” she began to say but was silenced once again by a light grip on the hand covering her face.  
“Everything was perfect. You’re perfect. Thank you.” Waverly’s voice shook as a happy tear fell down her face.  
Nicole exhaled in relief and leant closer to place a lingering kiss to the brunette’s forehead.  
“Can you stay?” Waverly asked quietly, almost worried that Nicole might say no.  
The redhead pulled back and gazed into her favourite pair of hazel eyes.  
“It’s just, you said the the tea would help me sleep better… but sleeping with you makes me sleep better.” she said, searching Nicole’s eyes, before realising what she said.  
“I mean sleeping as in you beside me, but… well I guess the _other_ way too but-” Waverly’s rambling was silenced by a pair of familiar soft lips moving against hers.  
“I know what you meant.” Nicole rolled her eyes fondly, caressing the brunette’s cheek softly.  
“Of course, I’ll stay.” she added, walking over to Waverly’s closet.  
“Don’t you have work tomorrow?” Waverly suddenly asked, the thought only popping into her head as she watched her girlfriend unbutton, and then hang, her work shirt up in the closet.  
“No, I took two days off so I could take care of you.” Nicole replied, her tone as casual as it could get. The domesticity of the situation causing Waverly’s heart to race. 

Nicole shook her head as she shimmied out of her work pants. She then reached into the drawer Waverly had given her — completely unaware of how her current state of undress had captured her girlfriend’s complete attention — and returned to the bed with an old University shirt and shorts.  
She slipped the shorts and baggy shirt on, before climbing into the bed.  
It was only when she turned her head, did Nicole notice Waverly’s jaw slacked.  
Recognising the look in the brunette’s eyes, Nicole shuffled, pressing herself into Waverly’s back.  
“Nuh uh. You’re sick.” she mumbled into the brunette’s shoulder.  
“That’s not fair. You can’t just…” Waverly pouted.  
“Just…?” Nicole bit her lip to stifle a grin.  
“Just… look like that and then not…” the brunette got all flustered, and hid her face in the pillow, her head lay on. 

Unable to resist Waverly, the redhead kissed her way up her girlfriend’s neck and draped her arm around the brunette’s waist, cuddling into her.  
“When you’re feeling better… I promise.” she whispered in Waverly’s ear, smiling against warm skin as another involuntary shiver ran through Waverly.  
An adorable yawn escaped the brunette and she hugged Nicole’s arm around her tighter.  
“Okay.” Waverly hummed, “Thank you again for today. You’re the best.” she added, her voice heavy with sleep.  
“Anytime, Waves.” Nicole promised with a final kiss to the brunette’s shoulder.  
Waverly hummed again in response.  
“Go to sleep now, Baby.” Nicole whispered, burrowing her face in the space between Waverly’s neck and shoulder.  
Both drifting off to sleep within seconds and both thankful for having the other in their life. 

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a comment with what you think?


End file.
